A walk in the Poqueira Gorge

A recent walk up the Rio Poqueira was a delight, the Poqueira gorge in this area provides great shade in summer and this combined with the effect of the river itself leads to relatively cool walking even in mid summer. What also made this particular walk special was the return spring flowers en route. The middle section of the walk about three kilometres from the start in the now near deserted hamlet of Cebadilla passes though a very lush section as it passes above the river. This area lies at about 1700m and was full of spring flowers which have long gone from my area of the mountain. The flowers included varieties of purple orchids, forget-me-nots and some very nice specimens of broomrape, a parasitic plant with distinctive brown stems. Whilst not a rare plant these are not common and depend on a suitable host plant being in close proximity. After about an hour and a half in the cool of the valley the route climbs a steeply up to cortijo las Tomas at about 2,100m. Unfortunately this section is in full sun and at this time of year was extra hard work. We returned via an acequia on the west side of the valley leading to the Rio Veleta . The start of the acequia section is one of the few sections of what are known as ‘’protected path’’. A short section of the acequia has been cut through section of rocky outcrops and is quite exposed. This section is ‘’protected’’ by lengths of cable which , in theory at least can be used to safely cross this short section of path. To be honest one particular piece of cable is so loose that if you where unfortunate to slip and held on you would end up dangling some way down the rock face below the path. There are a couple more of the se sections of protected paths here in the Sierra Nevada. One lies just east the Refugio Carihuela south of Veleta whilst the other is on the ‘Verada Cortada’ in the Lanjaron Valley.

Who owns the Sierra Nevada?

I read recently on a UK walking web site that Blencathra, one of the Lake District’s best known peaks is up for sale. Blencathra, also known as Saddle Back lies just north of the main road in to Keswick from the motorway, so is easily accessible for many walkers and is seen by even more tourists as they drive into the ‘Lakes’ . At 868m it’s not the highest summit but it is popular nontheless and is perhaps best known for the short scramble across Sharp Edge en route to what is a fairly unremarkable summit. Sharp Edge is a short knife edge rock ridge which is now well polished due to the amount of traffic across it and when combined with a descent of Halls Fell ridge gives a great day out in the mountains. Seeing this news about the sale brought to mind a question I get asked by many clients, that is ‘’who owns the Sierra Nevada’’. I must admit I wasn’t really able to answer that question properly until recently when there was an article in the Spanish newspaperpaper Ideal. The overall area of the Sierra Nevada, which is made up both of the Parque Natural and Parque Nacional covers an area of 172,238 ha. The bulk of the land holding, some 100,389 ha is held in public ownership by organisations such as Ayuntamientos, the Junta de Andalucia as well as the Parque bodies themselves. The rest is in private ownership, mainly made up of farm holdings on the lower slopes of the range. The Sierra Nevada got its designation as Parque Nacional in 1999. Prior to that in 1986 it was designated as Biosphere Reserve and later in 1989 as a Parque Natural. The designation of the Parque Nacional meant that many changes occurred in the management of the mountains and it was at this time the famed high level road which once ran across the mountains from Capileira to the ski village above Granada was shut. The closure of the road began the return of the mountains to their natural state - a process which in the UK has been named ‘re wilding’. The road, open to traffic during the summer gave very easy access to the high mountains. So accessible was the area that the first Cicerone Press guide to the range describes an ascent of Mulhacen from a car park that existed in the Caldera area which lies at 3,000m at the foot of the west ridge of the mountain. Blencathra by the way is on the market for £1.75 million, a snip really when you consider you also get to hold the ancient feudal title of Lordship of the Manor of Threlkeld.

Escarihuela of the Taha

Recently I was out with a large group and once again walked a favourite route of mine, the Ruta Medieval in the Taha area of the Alpujarra. Whilst I have done the walk many times it has to be said it is perhaps one of the best low level routes in the area. What makes the route special is a combination of stunning scenery and great walking with numerous things to stop and wonder at en route. The route does a circuit of the Rio Trevelez gorge as it runs from Trevelez south west toward Orgiva. Trevelez lies at 1,476m and claims the status as the highest village in Spain and is famous for its cured jamon. The gorge is steep sided and dramatic with high cliff faces above narrow ravines. The nature of the landscape means that there are no surfaced roads within the valley and the river only has three crossing places as it runs the 10km section within the Taha. At each of these crossings an ancient pack horse bridge spans the river where for centuries, mules and man have been able to safely cross. The bridge below the village of Fondales is known locally as the ‘’Roman bridge ‘‘ and whilst the current structure may not be from that period a crossing at this point must have existed for many years. The gorge here is only about ten meters across allowing a single arch to span the river about twenty meters below. Perhaps the most spectacular of the three crossings is the next one up stream which lies on the river between the villages of Ferreirola and Busquistar. Here the valley sides are particularly steep and paths on both sides of the valley take dramatic zig zags through near vertical terrain. On the south side in particular the path clings to the hill side as it climbs 250m vertically in about the same linear distance. So dramatic are these routes that they even have their own word in Spanish, ‘escarihuela’ like a ladder and their dramatic nature was commented on as far back as the Moorish period when the Arab poet Ibn-Aljathib described one example as a ‘’ path, of danger and martyrdom’’ whilst the Spanish writer Hurtado de Mendoza describes the area as ‘’harsh mountain: valleys leading to the abyss: mountains up to the sky: narrow paths: gullies and precipices with no escape’’. Even after all these years the drama of these routes is still there so if you only get chance to walk one route in the area this has to be the one.

Eras of the Alpujarra

Today when walking along many paths in the Alpujarra and other areas we pass though olive, almond or citrus groves. Whilst these crops have been farmed for many years, in the past there used to also be a huge amount of cereal crops such as wheat , barley and oats grown across this region. Proof of this comes in a couple of ways. Many of the area’s river valleys contain the ruins of buildings which were obviously water-driven corn mills. In the Poqueira Gorge for instance there are about half a dozen ruined water mills down the length of the valley, once used to produce flour. Often these are found at key river crossings and at the junction of mule tracks once used to carry unmilled corn to the site and flour away to the villages of the area. Also evident higher up the hill sides are a large number of threshing circles. Known as ‘’Eras’’ these flat circular structures are often paved in the local stone and can be up to ten metres across. Eras are usually found on ridges or cols where the increased wind speed helped in the process of collecting the husks. They would have been used by local farmers to winnow the cut cereals and separate the wheat from the chaff. Here in Lanjaron there is an annual ’’ Fiesta de Parva’’ when the process of threshing is recreated. The process start when a strange cart like structure with wheels resembling circular saw blades is pulled around and around the era by a mule whilst a driver perches atop the cart. This chops up straw which is strewn across its surface. This cutting begins to break the seed husks off the stems and once tossed into the air, allows the lighter chaff to be blown away and heavier seed to fall back to ground to be collected for milling. Judging by the number of eras you see on some walks the amount of cereal produced in the area must have been huge. Within five minutes of my finca alone, there are three eras. Now apparently a protected structure, in the past they were generally seen as communal spaces which served a number of families. Another sign of this previous use of the land is the planting of olive and fruit trees along the terrace edges. Apparently the reasons for this was to allow a cereal crop to be grown down the middle of the terrace and still maintain viable fruit or olive crops. If. like me, your terrace walls are quite high this only seems to make the collection of olives even harder. Collecting olives from a four meter tree on top of a two meter terrace wall is not an easy process.

Sierra de Lujar, Alpujarra.

Whilst reaching a height of 1,850m the Sierra de Lujar range to the south of the Sierra Nevada is generally overlooked by walkers visiting the area. Perhaps the reason is that with its whale bacl appearance and lack of rocky peaks it just does not appeal. There are routes here however with one of the better ascents forming a hard day out with about 1,200m of ascent. The route starts in the Baranco de Castilejo a steep sided valley due south of Orgiva. The baranco , which holds some single pitch climbs on outcrops , provides an easy route in as there is a mine access track running up it from the main road. The track splits at about 700m with the main branch doubling back to climb the western side of the valley to the mine workings above. Our route climbs the eastern side on a less well used track before reaching a fire break/track which runs south along the crest of a narrow ridge that climbs steeply upward. The track provides a clear route until about 1.000m where it reverts to a path running up the middle of the fire break which still follows the crest. The route now steepens and at 1250m begins to develop a more rocky nature with a number of limestone outcrops along the crest. The first three are by passed to the right (west) though provide short scrambles. After a further 300m of ascent the ridge fades into the main bulk of the mountain. From here you will see the masts at the summit, head due south to and these. Just before the first of the masts you will reach a narrow tarmac road, follow this past the first of the masts to bear right just before the second group to follow a stone path bearing right before the third group of masts. The path now narrows and heads west to cross the head of the Baranco de Castilejo and reaches a minor peak. Now narrower the path crosses open plateau to reach the edge of a one forest. From here head right (north) through the forest. As you emerge cross a distinctive limestone ridge to enter a second narrower band of older pine trees. Leave the second band of trees and head to a clear track still heading north across the hillside. As the track turns west continue north across virgin hillside to reach the head of a broad firebreak which creates the start of the descent route. Cross a number of narrow tracks until at about 1,250m you reach a well used track. There are some large caves off to the left (west).This now heads east to pass the ruins of some mine buildings before zigzagging down the mountainside back to the start of the route.

Chill out in the Chillar

The Rio Chillar runs down from the Sierra Almijara range inland of Nerja and is a popular walk especially in the summer when the pools and falls are full of people cooling off. Most head off from the car park in the valley north of Nerja and walk upstream dipping in the numerous pools en route. The most popular area is near a ‘cascada’ created where the river comes over large boulders lodged in the river bed. The walk here is not to be underestimated as it’s at least an hour and a half upstream from the start. A better option which makes more of the area is to include the rio as the return section of a circuit taking in the ridge west of the river. This is accessed by following the concrete track up from the ford near the start. The concrete links a number of cortijos before becoming a rough stone track following the border of the Parque Natural. Once on the ridge itself the route is fairly obvious and leads eventually to a clear path, the Linman trail. The trail is an old packhorse route running east from Frigiliana to the El Pinarillo picnic area. I did the walk in August when the heat on the first half was intense with only an occasional light breeze and little shade to be found on the main trail. Needless to say thoughts of the cool rio kept us going and it was with great relief that we eventually descended steep ground to meet the river. Here after a bite to eat and a change of footwear we headed down stream. The crystal clear water was never more than knee deep in the river itself and was just about cool enough to refresh as we waded through the lush gorge with steep rock sides topped with trees and shrubs. Initially we had the gorge to ourselves however after about thirty minutes we began to meet people walking up and once we got to the ‘cascada’ it was almost like being on one of Nerja’s beaches. The scenery in the gorge is always magnificent but at its best at ‘’la cahorros’’ where it passes through a very narrow section of gorge. Here the rock has been worn smooth by winter floods and you can easily touch both sides at the same time. Unfortunately marred by graffiti, this is a spectacular section of the walk. From the end of la cahorros the gorge begins to widen out before the river finally deposits you back at the car park. This walk should NOT be attempted after heavy rain or if there is a chance of a thunder storm when flood water in the valley would make the route treacherous.

Navachica a Medditeranean summit

In early June before it got too hot to do much I climbed Navachica. At 1834m it is the highest summit in the Sierra Almijara area of the Axarquia ranges and sits inland of Nerja. Starting from the El Pinarillo picnic area inland from the famous Nejra caves the route follows a number of dry barancos;- los Cazadores, la Charca and del Rey. The route follows an old mule trail which served a number of mines in the area, passing mine entrances at the track side. In its heyday this area must have been a hive of activity with a clear track running the length of the valley. Now with the route having been recently re way-marked we follow a less well maintained rocky path with the occasional short scramble up rock steps in the river bed. From the head of the baranco del Rey, the climb makes a tortuous ascent to meet a slightly easier line to the final summit. The guide book gives an ascent of 1,300m which makes this one of the biggest routes in the region and not to be undertaken lightly. Whilst my book described a return using the ascent, it also hinted at a number of more ‘’interesting’’ ways off. I chose to head due south from the summit along a route that I had spied during the climb. Heading toward the Med I descended toward El Puerta. What path there was limited to very vague lines through vegetation across easy ground. The route led to the top of a steep section of rock which I had noted during the ascent and had thought would be the crux. I had presumed it could be by passed on the far side, no such luck. There was a small cairn marking a vague descent line down through loose and quite steep ground and with a bit of shuffling around and backtracking occasionally the route did ‘go’ and reverted back to a reasonably clear trail. From here the path ran along a narrow ridge with some huge drops to the west into the upper section of the Rio Chillar valley. The north ridge of an unnamed 1,440m summit just north of la Puerta offered an exhilarating scramble before I returned to the normal route and a long descent back to the car. A great route for cooler days at the end of the year.